Combines Grain Trucks

Growing pains are never very fun, emotionaly or for the cash flow. Having been thru the grain hauling growing pains recently here's my obersvations. 1 big truck (600 to 900 bushel) is nice but it will drive the grain hauler nuts if things get backed up at the elevator or bins are full and have to move the auger etc. It is very hard to get the big truck back to the field before the single trucks are full. 2 big trucks seem to work out the best. Do you use a grain cartIJ We use ours for surge capacity which helps the grain haulers out.

I would rather sit in line with 950 bushels of corn than 500 any day. I have learned the hard way with a stupid tandem and a half load of whatever and will never go back to it. My semi gets 6.5 mpg and the old gasser tandem with almost half the weight would never beat 4.5. To the original poster..look at http:__www.truckpaper.com_ and you will founder on all the trucks for sale. Take your time, a good truck and used timpte hopper will cost you less than 25K, less if you get an older trailer. Age doesn't matter on these things, just how they were treated and maintained. Don't bother with a sleeper unless you mean to put a man in it full time. Bought my old 83 Timpte for 11,700 in 88, still have it and have no reason to get rid of it. New is about 26 and change w_air ride. Nice tractor can be had for 10 and up. Good luck..it's fun to look around to buy a truck, trouble is they never wear out for a farmer so you better make darn sure you get one you can stand to look at for ten years or more.

The truck would primarily be for hauling grain from bins. I dont run a cart so i dont need to be running the length of the field to unload every time. Instead i usually have 3200 bushels worth of gravity beds at about 4-600 bushel capacity in different spots of the field. This way since i work alone im always close to an unloading point then at lunch and the end of the day i round em up with my wife 2 at a time and 1 at a time for her (the smaller tractor isnt big enough for 2 full wagons of corn.) and unload at our grain facilities.

Just curious as to what the axle weight limits are in your area. Here in Ontario we are allowed 10Mt per axle (less on some steering axles ) on trucks. While the vast majority of farmers here pull multiple gravity box wagons ( 2x500bu=1000bu or 2x700bu=1400bu per pair) more and more larger operators are switching to trucks.With the price of tractor_trailer units here, a decent set up will run you minimum of $30,000 Can,it doesnt make sense to run tandem trucks. Instead the 'mimimum' is a tractor and 3 legger trailer, 4 axle and 5 axle units are also popular as well as B-train hopper setups. We ourselves run a 89 Kenworth tri-axle unit with 19ft dump pulling a 4 axle ( tandem_tandem) 26ft pup trailer. This allows us to legal haul 1500bu per trip ( maximum 140,000lb gross ) If you dont have a great distance to travel or speed is not important then wagons are still the way to go,much cheaper,less maintence and operating costs are much lower ( no need to have a licenced truck driver, insurance,licences etc) If however you must have a truck i would suggest at least a 3 axle tractor _trailer unit.

US laws limit trucks w_ w_out trailers to 80000 gross no matter the setup.

Actually you can haul 105,000 in the US with triple axle or with a pup trailer legally.

would a 93 Pete 377 with a l10 330 Cummins under 500,000 miles 16' OX bed like new be worth $15,000IJ It has decent tires and isn't beat up at all !

And while bull hauler's at it.....you can haul 85,500 legal on the two lanes......80,000 on interstate in Kansas......That goes up to 87,500 I believe in Wyoming and of course other states vary as well.

80,000 , 87500 or even 105,000lb gross limits isnt a whole lot. What is the trucking rate IJ Im sure Michigan must have higher limits because we see alot of "michigan trains" coming into Ontario grain terminals. For those of you not familiar with a michigan train setup its essentially a set of A-trains with every available inch of frame mounted with axles. Its nothing to see a set of michigan trains with 11 axles under them.( 3 on the tractor, 4 on the lead trailer and 4 under the pup trailer) .Now i would think a setup like that would probably have a tare wait approaching 55-60,000 pounds. If the gross limit were 80k then that leaves only leave a payload of ,hmmmmm 20-25,000lbsIJDoesn't add up because i THINK most of these trains are bringing 12-1400bu in. Any ideasIJ

Thud....I've heard them called "Michigan Millipedes" and know exactly what your talking about. I think though if you'd reconsider.....a gross weight of 105 thousand your going to be able to haul more with another axle vs. what it weighs. General rule I understand is 20,000 on each axle except the front....15 or 17 on it. So say your going to haul 80,000 on 5 axles but bridge laws permit 100,000 so add another 1000 lbs of dead weight to the truck with an axle so you can haul another 19,000 lbs legal seems to make sense to me. No....I don't know what an axle weighs to be real honest with rims,tires,gears,housing and oil but I highly doubt it's over 1000lbs. My Pete with a 48 foot Flat on 5 axles weighs in empty (full tanks of fuel) just around 32,000. I'd guess with another 5 axles under it I would still be under 40,000. Of course....this is nuts for a grain farmer I think. The up front cost could never be returned on a purchase vs. a lease or custom hire. A trailer like that is going to cost you over 50,000 dollars when you get done so practicality rules that idea out I'd think....least on my end of the stick. While were on the subject though....I loaded the living heck out of a 42 foot Merritt trailer this summer and gross was way over 80 thousand (I'm not going to say exact what) and I had on 1200 bushel. What are those michigan millepedes pulling for trailer lenght that they are getting out 1400 bushel'sIJ